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Thread: Water temp question

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Posts: 1-10 of 29
2014-07-08 03:01:14
#1
Water temp question
Just wondering what kind of water temps you guys are getting on your boosted cars....Including your location,and setup,also AC or not will be awesome!
FL/GA/TX/AZ input would be awesome.
I am looking for idle temps,hard driving(boosting alot),and cruising temp ranges.
I obviously am looking for input from guys with aftermarket temp gauges.consult or other accurate device...not stock BS
Thanks in advance
Last edited by eggman on 2014-07-08 at 03-04-59.
2014-07-08 03:28:09
#2
200 in my friends G20 DE-T, ive seen it hit 207 though. He was running just plain regular coolant (Prestone yellow) b/c he assumed it was better - we flushed it and put in water wetter and 90 percent distilled water, temps dropped about 12 degrees - now this is when the temps are mid 80's and up. WHen its like 64 and at night temps are below 184
2014-07-08 10:48:57
#3
NC - no a/c. I did a thermostat mod.
I usually idle around 181-187 (thats when my fans come on and go off)
On 95 ish days in town traffic it'll stay 187 until I get on highway and cruise.
Hottest Ive seen mine was going up the mountains in boost, ~208
2014-07-08 11:22:00
#4
with temps in the mid 90's I see water temps around 170-180 while driving. this is with the nx radiator and a vented hood. I had about the same temps with my koyo and a stock hood. I have never tried to run a/c on a boosted car. You can figure a/c will add at least another 20deg to your coolant temps.
2014-07-08 13:07:29
#5
Hey sort of off topic but does anyone know how many gallons of coolant the standard OEM SR20 radiator takes including the overflow bottle?
2014-07-08 13:21:00
#6
Location: Worst Carolina AKA the armpit of the South
Setup: Efficient T28 setup with AEM EMS
A/C: No A/C

On hot days just idling the coolant will get up to 169°F pretty quickly at which point the 180°F thermostat (higher temp thermostat from an SR16VE) starts to creep open and temps stabalize around 169°F for a while. This is WAY too low, but at least not as low as it was with the stock thermostat (I saw 155°F steady with the 170°F stock thermostat). The Koyo racing radiator does much too good of a job for idling around and cruising and on a normal ECU I would still be well in the cold enrichment zone. I would like to be around 200-210°F at all times if I could. If I cruise around for a while temps still hang out at 169°F or so. If I start romping on it I can get temps to rise to maybe near 200°F which is great and the car runs really well, but still maybe on the low side. If I get on the track and start pounding down the laps the temps will slowly creep up to 220°F or even 230°F after a while and I have to start nursing the car around by short shifting and coasting on the straights. I'm pretty sure this overheating is due to the serious lack of ducting around the radiator. I've removed even the stock sheet metal ducting to fit my charge pipes, making it really bad. I need to replace the ducting panels with something.

I will have to check, but I think I have the slim radiator fan turning on at 215°F. I think stock is 212°F. If the car idles on a hot day for a long time the temps will eventually rise as things heat soak until the fan turns on at 215°F and brings the temp down properly. I think I have the fan turning off once temps are brought down to 202°F from 215°F.

My temps are read from the stock sensor (by the oil filter) feeding to the ECU.
I run the stock radiator cap. I use a normal 50/50 mix. I mean to add water wetter at some point if the ducting isn't enough for track temps.
Last edited by BenFenner on 2014-07-12 at 15-17-49.
2014-07-08 13:43:23
#7
Originally Posted by unijabnx2000
I usually idle around 181-187 (thats when my fans come on and go off)
Are you controlling your own fans? At 181 you're just barely out of the stock warm-up enrichment. I forget where it stops enriching, but I think it is at or near 178°F.



@cortrim1 you sound like you have a similar problem to mine, running too cold for a lot of the time.
Last edited by BenFenner on 2014-07-08 at 13-45-21.
2014-07-08 16:32:54
#8
Originally Posted by BenFenner
Are you controlling your own fans? At 181 you're just barely out of the stock warm-up enrichment. I forget where it stops enriching, but I think it is at or near 178°F.


Yeah, I had AEM v1... (new picture coming soon to my build thread...)
I noticed hotter idle temps before modded my thermostat (back when I had a turbo blanket on my turbine) it wanted to stay around 190-191 in town traffic.
Im fine with having cooler coolant.
Last edited by unijabnx2000 on 2014-07-08 at 16-34-32.
2014-07-08 16:57:04
#9
Originally Posted by BenFenner
Originally Posted by unijabnx2000
I usually idle around 181-187 (thats when my fans come on and go off)
Are you controlling your own fans? At 181 you're just barely out of the stock warm-up enrichment. I forget where it stops enriching, but I think it is at or near 178°F.



@cortrim1 you sound like you have a similar problem to mine, running too cold for a lot of the time.


I have the nismo thermostat we also set my fans to come on around 198deg. The vented hood helps out a lot. my cruising temps stay around 180-185 especially driving around town.
2014-07-09 01:08:06
#10
I just got my vdo gauge working and it cruises around 180ish without ac(not working yet).3 slimfans on a koyo
I was concerned because on a 95+degree day I sat at idle in traffic and it got over 210 for sure creeping to 220 almost. I was just trying to see if that is normal for a turbo car..My VE has never gotten that hot,and it has a stock nx radiator.
Am I right that anything over 220 is where I should worry about starting to overheat?
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